Apparatus for assembling footwear uppers



y .1929. E. L. PATTEN' APPARATUS FOR ASSEMBLING FOOTWEAR UPPERS Filed Sept. 13, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet INVENTOR Ernest L. alia-n AT RNEY May 28, 1929. E. PATTEN APPARATUS FOR ASSEMBLING FOOTWEAR UPPERS Filed Sent. 13, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 A56 INVENTOR fines? l. f al'lefl A TORNEY III J" May 28, 1929. E, L, PAT TEN 1,714,618

APPARATUS FOR ASSEMBLING FOOTWEAR UPPERS Filed Sept. 13, 1927 4 Sheets-Sheet s mo 99 -98 4 d 22 6/ a; 73

Q g l WW if ATTR NEY May 28, 1929. E. L. PATTEN APPARATUS FOR ASSEMBLING FOO'I'WEHM'? UPPERS Filed Sept. 13

4 Sheets-Sheet 4 m llwklwm I f a. Hmmwl 1!; a 5

ATTORNEY Patented May 28, 1929.

arr rrs 51 at r ERNEST L. 'PATTEN, on NEW Haven, eonnno'rrcur, nssrenonro. L. canons & com

PANY, 015 new HAVEN, GONNECTIC'UT,'A oon-ronnrron or CONNECTICUT.

APPARATUS non Assn vrBLInG roorwnma urrnns.

Application filed September 13, 1827. Serial No. 219,223.

This invention relates to a machine forencasing a form with a footwearupper. More particularly it relates to a machine for and a method of encasing a footwear tree with the leg portion of the article.

It has been customary in assembling the various rubberized elements of a boot leg to position the same manually, an element at a time directly upon the boot tree. Such a n'iethod onconstruction has been time consuming, has required skilled workmen andthe individual elements of the boot leg have not been drawn with uniform tension or positioned accurately around the tree.

It is an object of this invention to provide a mechanism for encasing a boot tree with a previously assembled blank which is to constitute the boot leg. It is a further ob ect to provide a means for sealing the seanr of the boot leg. Another object is to provide an improved method of assembling a bootleg. Another object is to provide a means for building a boot leg upon a tree whereby the individual elements of the leg which-have been assembled in the fiat to the proper size and relative position either manually or mechanically are applied to the boot tree in a single sheet. Other objects will be apparent from the specification and from the drawings in which latter:

Fig. 1 is a partly broken away plan view of the entire machine Fig. 2 is a section along the line 22 of Fig. 1;

' Fig. 3 is an end view of the machine at the right of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a section through the machine upon the line 4-4 of Fig. 3; I

Fig 5 is an enlarged view of the push fingers and sealing rolls;

Fig. 6 is an enlarged view of the clamp members for holding the heel of the boot free showing the closing means; Fig. 7 is a side view of one of gers showing the closing means;

Fig. 8 is a detail section showing the relation of the toe block to the work tables and grip fingers; and I Fig. 9 1s a perspective view of the grip finger mechanism. I

Referring particularly to the drawings, in its preferred embodiment, the machine comprises a frame 1 carried by legs2 united by braces 3, the bottons of the legs being conthe grip finnected to a base 4. Grooved beams 5, ex-

tending vertically upward in the frame 1 from the brace 3 at each end of the machine, constitute runways inwhich the frame Slides (5 and 25 are adapted to have vertical reciprocating movement. A boot tree frame is formed bythe two U-beams 7 which extend transversely between the frame slides and are secured thereto by suitable bolts.

Power is transmitted to the machine from a motor 7 to a speed reduction unit 8 (Fig. 4)

which drives a cam shaft 9 rotatably mounted I in suitable bearings 10 whichare supported by the braces3. The clutch mechanism for transmitting power from the speed reduction unit to the shaft 9 includes a bracket 11 which is supported by the base4 and carries a'collar 12 which encircles the shaft 9. Collar 12 is provided with a notch which is designed to be intermittently engaged by a lug 13 carried by a sleeve 14. The sleeve 14 is normally pulled toward collar 12 by a spring (not shown) so that the lug 13 meshes with thenotch of the collar 12'. The sleeve 14 is non-'rotatably mounted upon the shaft 9 withprovision for longitudinal sliding movement. The sleeve 14 is provided with teeth 15 which are adapted to mesh with teeth on the drive wheel of the speed reduction unit. A groove posi-. tioned in the outer surface of the sleeve 14 is adapted to be engaged by rolls carried by a yoke 16 which is rigidly secured at its base upon a shaft 17. The shaft is rotatably carried in supports 18'and 19 and is actuated by means of a treadle 20 through a system of levers 20. Actuation and release of the treadle causes the sleeve 14 to be drawn into engagement with the speed reduction unit 7 whereby the shaft 9 is rotated forone revolu ,tion until the lug 13 is brought opposite the notch in the collar 12 permitting disengagement of the clutch mechanism. A com plete cycle of operations of the boot assembling machine occurs during one rotation of i the shaft 9.

The blank is to be assembled upon aform or boot tree 21 which is supported in an approximately horizontalposition at the upper part ofthe machine. At its top end it is held by a locating plug 22 having a rounded end adapted to engage an opening in the end of the boot tree. The boottree is adapted to bear against the collar 23 of the locating plug, which latter is supported upon a bracket which is mounted for vertical sliding movement in. a groovedrunway of the boot ed in bracket 24 can be caused to bear against frame slide 25 to maintain the relative positions of bracket 24 and frame slide 25 fixed:

portion of the boot tree heel, and are provided in adjusted position. The bracket carries a rack 27 at its lower end and is raised and lowered by means of a pinion 28 which engages the rack, the pinion being actuated as later described.

The toe of the boot tree is supported by the following elements. The U-beams 7 con stituting the boot tree frame carry bolted thereto a bracket 35. The bracket is provided with an opening through which an elevating rod 36 is adapted to pass. The enlarged head 86 of the elevating rodcarries a grooved locating block 45, and the rod 36 is provided with a rack 37 upon its surface which is engaged by a pinion 38 which is rigidly carried upon a spindle 39 which latter passes through the bracket and is rotatably supported thereby. The spindle also rigidly carries the pinion 28. An end of the spindle extends through the frame slide 6 and through a vertically extending slot 40 in the beam 5. An arm 41 is mounted rigidly upon the spindle 39 and carries a handle 42 for manually turning the spindle. A spring pressed detcnt 43 extends through the arm 41 and is adapted to engage a plurality of recesses in a dial 44 which extends through the slot 40 and is rigidly mounted upon the frame slide 6. It is to be noted that the various sized boot trees are of the same length but vary in their other dimensions. Consequently if a small size boot leg is to be made, in order to present itat the right level to tables to be hereinafter described. the locating plug 22an d locating block 45 must be elevated with respectto the boot tree frame, and if a large size boot leg is to be made, these elements must be lowered. The dial 44 is suitably marked to designate which particular recess the detent 48 should engage for each size boot tree.

Lateral movement of the locating block 45 with respect to the head 36 is permitted for adjustment purposes by providing it with a tongue which fits slidably in a groove in the head. Head 36 carries a bracket 46 (see 1) which by means of a pin supports a hand lever 48 for pivotal movement thereon. Lever 48 is pivotally connected to a link 49 which in turn is pivotally attacl'ied to one end of a link 50. the other end of which is attached to the locating block 45'. The-locating block is provided with a groove in its upper surface extending longitudinally thereof.-into which the toe of the boot tree can be fitted.

The heel of the boot tree is supported by a pair of clamp members 51. which are pivotally mounted by means of bolts 52 and spacer plate 53 upon the slide element 54. Slide element 54 is provided With a tongue which slidably engages a groove inthe bracket 55, the latter being rigidly carried upon tne beams 7. The clamp members 51 are curved upwardly (Fig. 2) so as to grip theupper with rearwardly extending arms-at the opposite side of their pivot points carrying rolls 56 which are adapted'to be engaged by the wedge shaped block 57. This block is supported on hand lever 58 which is pivoted to the bracket by means of pintle 59. A bolt 109 projects rearwardly from and is pivoted to a bottom lug on the slide element 54, said bolt extending through an opening in lever 58 (Fig. 6). The bolt carries a spring 110, the opposite ends of which rest against lever 58 and slide element 54. In operating the clamp members to grip a boot tree, the block 57 is first in withdrawn position, with the rolls 56 drawn toward each other by the spring 111. The slide element 54 is at the extreme outer portion of its path of travel Raising the handle 58 causes the same to pivot and the slide element '54 is pushed forwardly by the spring 110 until the clamp members 51 are in position to grip the heel. Slide element 54 then meets a stop 54" carried by the bracket 55 and continued elevation of the handle 58 forces the wedge block 57 against the pressure of the spring .110 between the rolls 56, spreading them apart and closing the clamp members 51 upon the boot tree. Suitable latching means actuated by the handle 112 are provided for holding the lever in its adjust-ed position.

Vertical reciprocation of the boot tree frame is effected by means of cams 60 which are rigidly mounted upon the shaft 9, said cams being provided with grooved cam surfaces which are engaged by the cam followers 61 of the levers 62. Each of levers 62 is pivotally secured to a brace 3 at one end and at its other end is pivotally attached to. a link 68 by means of a pin 64 (Fig. Link 63 is pivotally attached by a pin 65 to a lever 66 which has pivotal engagement at one end with the frame 1 and at its opposite end has pivotal engagement with the connecting link 67, said link 67 being pivotally secured to its frame slide 6 or 25. The cam is so arranged that the frame slide will be lowered and raised during one complete operation of encasing a forn'iwith a blank. Springs 67 are secured at one end to pins 67" (Fig. 1) extending from the frame 1 and at their opposite ends are attached to the levers 66 to aid in counterbalancing the weight of the boot tree frame.

The supports for the blank which is to be assembled around the boot tree comprise the tables 68, 69 and 70. The blank is designed to be positioned upon these tables lying underneath the boot tree with its side margins resting upon the tables 69 and 70. I The table 68 must be adjusted vertically for different bolt passes which is utilized for locking the adjustment. The table 68 .is pivotally secured upon the arm 7 3 by means of a pm i 76. A slot is provided in the end of the table so that the foot of the tree can rest against the walls of the slot and be supported thereby.

The work tables 69 and 70 are pivotally supported upon the frame 1 by means of pintles 76 (Fig. 8). The tables carry locating pieces 77 which are so placed that a blank will be properly positioned laterally across the machine when its edges abut against them. Locating pieces 77 are so positioned upon the tables 69 and 70 at the foot end of the machine that the blank will be properly positioned longitudinally when its ends abut against them.

Slots 78 are provided in the work tables 69 and 70 in order to make room for pairs of grip fingers to be now described. These pairs of grip fingers are provided for grasping the top and bottom margins of the blank and for drawing the blank around the boot tree. As the pairs of grip fingers for the top and bottom margins are identical but one pair will be described. Each grip finger is car- 1 ried upon a finger shaft 80 which latter is mounted for both longitudinal and rotary movement in bearings 81 which are rigidly secured upon the frame 1. Forward longitudinal movement of the shaft 80 is limited by a collar 82. The shaft carries rotatably a collar 83 (Figs. 7 and 9) from which there extends the arm 84 upon which one toothed jaw 85 of the grip finger is rigidly secured. The cooperating toothed jaw 86 of the grip finger is rigidly carried by a pin 87 which is rotatably mounted in the arm 84. The pin 87 carries rigidly thereon a cam follower 88 which is adapted to be actuated to close the jaws by means of a cam pin 89 which passes slidably through the arm 8t and is rigidly attached at one end to a collar 90 of the sleeve 91. Sleeve 91 is loosely mounted on the shaft 80. A spring 92 positioned around the shaft 80 bears against the collars 83 and 90 and normally maintains the sleeve 91 pressed rearwardly so that the aws can be opened by the spring 92 It will be noted that in the operation of causing the grip fingers to grip the blank they are first moved forwardly with the finger shaft 80 by virtue of the resistance of spring 92 to the force applied through the sleeve 91, thereby bringing the grip fingers to a position in which the jaws are positioned on opposite sides of the blank. WVhen the collars 82 abut against the bearings 81, forward movement is stopped. Th e jawscan now grip the blank and this is accomplished bythe yielding of the spring 92 permitting the sleeve 91 .to move longitudinally on shaft 80 whereby the cam pin is caused to actuate the cam lug 88 thereby closing the jaws of the grip fingers. Actuation of the sleeve 91 is effected through the yoke arm 93, which is provided at one end with rolls which engage in the groove of the sleeve 91, and whichis pivoted to a pin 94 carried upon the bracket 95 extending from the frame 1. "A link 96 connects the other end of yoke 93' with a link 97 which in turn is pivotally connected to an arm 98 rigidly aflixed upon'a'shaft99 (Figs. 1 and 3), the latter being mounted for rotationin suitable bearings 100 which are rigidly carried by the frame 1. A lever arm 101 is rigidly attachedto the shaft 99 at one end and at the other end is pivotally connected to a connecting rod 102 (Fig. 3). ing rod is pivotally connected to a link 10?) which latter is pivoted to a cam lever 1045. Cam lever '104is pivotally carried intermediate its ends by the support 10 1 and at the opposite end, thereof carries a cam follower 105 which is adapted totravel in the groove of a cam 106 which is rigidly mounted upon the shaft 9. p

After gripping the'margins of the blank, the grip lingers arecaused to pass upwardly in rotary movement about the shafts 80 in order to fold the blank around the boot' tree which at the same time is lowered; as shown point diagonally inwardly toward each other so that the paths of travel of the grip fingers at the top and bottom edges of the blank diverge during the wrapping operation. By this operation the blank is placed under tension longitudinally.

Means are provided for overlapping'the side margins'of t-heblank as follows: The pair of grip fingers which cooperate with the work table 69 are to be passed to their posi-z tion over the boot tree21 in advance of the pair of grip fingers which cooperate with the work table 70. In the preferred manner of securing this result, the grip fingers which cooperate with table 69 are initially considerably advanced in their rotary movement so that they carry the margin of theblank from table 69 and position the same uponthe boot tree before the oppositepairof grip fingers can bring the margin of the blank The connectfrom table to a position in which it can contact with and adhere to the first men tioned margin. This feature is desirable because of the tackiness of the rubber composition of the blank which causes the margins thereof'to adhere oncoming in contact. -All four grip finger shafts are positioned at the same elevation. The pinions 108 on the shafts 80 of the grip fingers which cooperate with the work table 69 are advanced in their rotation to the extent of three teeth, as comparod with the pinions of the other pair of grip lingers. Work table (59 is elevated and disposed at an angle so that its cooperating grip fingers in their initial position can grasp the blanks carried thereon. All four grip finger shafts make a half revolution in the operation of folding the blank around the boot tree. The pair of grip fingers which cooperates with the work table 69 will be passed from this table and will engage with the boot tree before the grip finger shafts 80 upon which they are mounted have ceased their onehalf of a revolution. In order that I thispair of grip fingers may not halt movement of shafts 80 upon engaging the upper surface of the tree, the following arrangement is provided. The collar .83 is loosely mounted upon the grip finger shaft 80, being held in position thereon by means of a shoulder 80 carried by the grip finger shaft. A spring 80 isrigidly secured at one end of the grip finger shaft 80 and at its opposite end bears against a portion of the jaw 85. Rotation of the collar 83 is effected from the grip finger shaft 80 through the spring 80. The collar 83 with arm 84 passes upwardly around the shaft 80 by force of the spring 80 'to a position vertically upon the shaft and upon passing downwardly would drop by force of gravityinto position over the boot tree except that an arm 80 projects rigidly from the shoulder 80 which is adapted to bear against a projection 80 which extends from the collar 83. The grip fingers are held firmly against the boot tree 21 by the springs 80 while the grip finger shafts 80 complete their one-half revolution and due to the flexibility of the springs, suiiicient lost motion is provided so that the grip fingers will not halt rotation of shafts 80. The half revolution of the shafts 80 is sufficient to cause the pair of grip fingers which cooperate with table 70 to bring the margin. of the blank therefrom to a position overlying the boot tree;

In this pair of grip fingers the collar 83 can be rigidly secured to shaft 80 if desired, and rotate therewith without lost motion. After completing the operation of encasing the boot tree with a blank, the grip finger shafts 80 are caused to rotate in the opposite direction by elevation of the frame slides 6 and 25 with the racks 107 carried thereby. This causes the arm 80 to engage with the proj ection 80, thereby forcing the collar 83 and the attached grip fingers in rotary movement back to'their initial position where the grip fingers are in readiness to grip a new blank positioned upon the work tables.

The grip finger mechanism can bemodified,

if desired, so thatthe opposite'pairs of grip fingers will be brought into overlappingrelation in other-ways; for. example, one of the work tables can be elevated with respect to the other and the shafts 80 of the grip fingers the blank therearound; push fingers are forced against the underlying side margin of the blank, which push fingers serve to draw the blank tightly around the boot tree. A plurality of the push fingers are provided which extend the length of the blank. They comprise an arm 119 having a forked end in which is'pivoted an arm 120 on pin 121. (Figs. 1 and 5). A shoulder 122 upon the arm 120 is adapted to bear against the base of the fork, which therefore limits its clownwardpivotal movement. A spring 123 is secured to the ar1n'119 and is adapted to rest against the upper surface of the arm 120, holding the same in position by a yielding pressure. The arm 120 has secured thereto a spring member, which spring member is provided with a forwardly extending arm 125 bounded at each side by shorter arms 126. These arms can be suitably modified to conform to the shape of the boot tree and it will benoted that the push finger, adjacent the top end of the boot tree is provided with a plurality of the shorterarms126. These push fingers are rigidly supported in spaced relation upon a shaft 127. which in turn is mounted for rotation in levers 128. Levers 128 are rigidly afiixed to a shaft-129 which is rotatably mounted in suitable bearings supported by brackets 95. Lever 130 is rigidly afiixed to the shaft 129 at one end and at its other end has a pivotal connection with the connecting rod 131. Connecing rod .131 is pivotally attached to a cam lever 132, which. latter is pivotally supported adjacent its middle portion upon a support 133 and at its opposite end carries a cam follower 133? which is adapted to be actuated by the cam 134 on cam shaft 9. The connecting rod 131 is provided with a turnbuckle 135 for purposes of adjustment. Upon rotation of the cam 13% the push fingers will be moved forwardly into engagement with the underlying margin of the blank. In order to secure a downward pressure upon the push fingers of suitable strength so as to tightly draw the blank about the boot tree, there have been provided the following elements. A cam 136 rigidly mounted upon the shaft 9 engages a cam follower 137 mounted upon one end of the cam lever 138. Cam lever 138 is pivoted upon a support 139 between its ends and at the opposite end from the cam follower is pivotally connected to a connecting rod 140. Connecting rod 140 has pivotal connection with a link 141 which latter is rigidly secured to the shaft 127. The connecting rods 102 and 140 are provided with turnbuckles similarly to the rod 131, in order to provide for adjustments. Rotation of the cams 134 and 136 produces a compound movement of the push fingers in that as the push fingers are forced forwardly by the cam 134, they are at the same time given a downward pressure through rotation of the cam 136. This movement of the push fingers insures a positive grip upon the margin of the blank so that it is drawn positively around the boot tree with considerable force, the ends of the overlying margins being held by the grip fingers.

Having placed theblank around the boot tree in a tightly drawn position, the next step is to seal the seam formed by the overlapped margins thereof and this is accomplished by means of the two sets of sealing rolls 142 and 143. A pair of these rolls is carried by each of a plurality of fingers which are mounted adjacent the boot tree extending the length of the blank. Each roll finger is comprised of an arm 144 which is bifurcated at one end thereof so as to receive an end of the arm 145 which is pivotally supported in the fork by pin 146. The end of the arm 145 abuts against the base of the bifurcation so as to limit pivotal movement of the arm 145,in one direction. A spring 147 is secured to the arm 144 and one end thereof overlies and bears against the upper surface of the arm 145, thereby forcing the latter downwardly with a yielding pressure. The arm 145 carries a primary sealing roll 142 which is mounted for rotation upon the pin 148 which extends through the end of the arm 145. These sealing rolls 142 are preferably slightly tapered, as shown in Fig. 1, and somewhat varied in size and shape in order to conform to the contour of the boot tree. The arm 145 carries projecting from the body thereof an (BXtGIlSlOILlfQ. This extension is provided with a hole through which one end of the formed sup-' porting member 150 for the secondary sealing roll 1.43 passes. Sealing roll 143 1s mounted for rotary movement upon a pin 151 which is secured in the forks of the support-mg memher 150. Supporting member 150 is provided with a pin 152 which projects outwardly through a slot in the extension 149 sa d slot being of suflicient length to permlt limited rotary movement of the supportlng member 150. Member 150 is secured in posltion by a nut 153. Limited rotary movement of the supporting member 150. permits the secondary sealing roll 143 to readily adjust itself to the contour of the boot tree. The roll fingers are rigidly mounted in spaced relation upon a shaft 154 and said shaft 154 is actuated by levers 155 pivotally connected thereto.- Levers 155 are rigidly aflixed to a shaft 156 whichis rotatably mounted in suitable bearings supported by brackets 95. .Lever 160 is rigidly afiixed to the shaft 156 at one end and lower adapted to engage and be actuated by the cam 157. Upon rotation of the cam 157 the roll fingers are moved forwardly into engagernent withthe blank. Downwardpressure ofthe roll fingers upon the blank is secured through the following elements. One end of a lever 161 is rigidly affixed to shaft 154 and the other end is pivotally attached to connecting rod 162. Rod 162 is pivotally connected to one end of a cam lever 162 which is pivotally supported adjacent its middle portion and carries at its opposite end a cam follower which is engaged by the cam 158. Rotation of the cams 157 and 158 pro duces a compound movement of the roll lingers in that as the roll fingers are forced for- I at its other end has pivotal connection with a Wardly by cam 157 they are forced downwardly'by cam 158. The relative position of the push'fingers and sealing rolls at the time when the-primary sealing rolls142 are functhe blank is shown in Fig. 5. In this position, the primary sealing rolls have passed between the forwardly extending arms. 125 of the spring members to a position in which they just clear the ends of the shorter arms 126. In this position they press spaced portions of the overlapped margins together. The push fingers are now withdrawn and at the same time the roll fingers are pressed further forwardly and downwardly so that the secondary sealing rolls 143 press against the upper surface of the boot leg with con-' siderable force, completing the sealing of the lapped margins- Before the secondary sealing rolls can move forwardly the grip fingers must be withdrawn. The cams 106 are so arranged that the grip fingers release their grlp upon the top and bottom margins of the boot leg and are drawnlongitudinally out of the [way before the secondary sealingrolls 143 tioning to seal the overlapped'margins of pass across the overlapped margins. Having accomplished the sealing operation, the roll fingers are withdrawn to their origlnal position.

During this forward and rearward movement of the push fingers and roll fingers, their paths of travel normally take them across the plane of the work tables 69 and 70 necessarily pivoting the latter on their shafts 76 In order to remove the resulting strain upon the push fingers and roll fin ers, the tables 69 and have each been provided with cam surfaces 165 (Fig. 8). These came surfaces are designed to be engaged by a cam roll 166 carried by each of arms 167 which are rigidly mounted upon the levers 128 and 155 respectively. 7 As the push fingers and roll fingersmove forwardly to a position over the upper surface of the boot tree, the tables 69 and'70 are pushedupwardly out of the way by the rolls 166.

Operation-fit thebeginning of the operation of the machine the various elements thereof are in the positions illustrated in Figs. 1, 2 and 3 with the boot tree frame 7 at the upper portionof its path oftravel and with the grip fingers pointed laterally away from the boot tree. A blank whichis to constitute the boot leg is assembled as a flat piece out of suitable strips of rubber coinposition and rubberized fabric cut to the proper size and shape. Other materials can be used if desired such as leather, fabric, etc. The blank is positioned upon the ma chine with its side margins resting upon'the work tables 69 and 70 and its middle portion resting upon the table (38. The boot leg is accurately positioned manually by causing the edges thereof to contact with the locating pieces 77 and 77. The boot tree is placed in position upon the frame 7 with its top fitted to thelocating plug 22, the toe positioned in the groove of the locating block 45 and the clamps 51 moved to grip the heel. The locating block and locating plug are first adjustedto their proper positions for the particular size of boot tree used. The clutch mechanism is thrown into engagement so as tocause the cam shaft9 to rotate for one complete revolution, during which the operation of Wrapping the blank about the boot tree is effected. The grip fingers move forwardly into the slots 7 8 in the work tables 69 and 70, grip the top and bottom margins of the blank and at once begin their paths of travel about the shafts 80 as aXes. At the same time the boot tree 21 is lowered from its upper to its lower position shown in dotted lines in Fig. 8. As the boot tree reaches its lowermost'position, the grip fingers close in over its upper surface folding the blank around the tree and overlapping the side margins thereof at the top of the tree. The push. fingers press forwardly against the blank adjacentthe inner margin of the same before the outer margin is brought near enough to contact with and adhere thereto, pressing it tightly against the boot tree and drawing it around the tree with considerable pressure. The roll fingers now move forwardly and the primary sealing rolls 142 press against the upper layer of the blank between the ends of the push fingers. These rolls hold the overlapped ends in position while the push fingers are withdrawn after which the secondary sealing rolls arrive in position to press against the seam, smoothing the same and firmly uniting the margins by pressure. Prior to functioning of the secondary sealing rolls in this manner, the grip fingers release their grip upon the cornersof the boot leg and are drawn backward out ofthe path of the secondary sealing rolls. Thesecondary sealing rolls are then withdrawn, the boot tree elevated to its original position and the grip fingers are rotated about the finger shafts 80 as axes to positions rea'dyto begin the assemblingoperation anew. The boot tree can now removed from the anachine. I

lVhile the invention has been. particularly described as appliedeto the encasing of a boot tree with a blank which is to constitute a boot leg, it will be understood that it is applicable also to the encasing of any article with a flexible coating. The coating used need not be formed of rubber compositionor rubber impregnated fabric but can be made of any flexible material such as leather, fabric, etc.

It will be understood if a material is used I which is notinherently tacky or adhesive in itself, that a suitable cement can be applied to the overlapped margins which it isdesired to seal, after which the sealing rolls can be actuated to close the seam.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is: r

1.. An assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means for encasing the form with an open blank and juxtaposing the margins thereof, means for oining the margins, and means for holding a margin of the blank during the operation of the last mentioned means.

2. An assembling machine comprising a plurality of relatively adjustable means for holding a form, means for encasing the form with an open blank and overlapping the margins thereof in a'seam, and rolls for sealing.

the seam.

3. An assembling machine comprising a plurality of relatively adjustable means for holding a form and a sheet blank in cooperative relation, means for folding the blank around the form by relative movements of the two, and means whereby the margins of the blank are overlapped-and pressed together.

4. A footwear upper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means for encasing the form with an open blank and juxtaposing the margins thereof, yielding means acting on a margin of the blank for tensioning the blank around the form during said first operation, and means for joining the said margins.

5. A footwearupper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means for encasing the form with an open blank overlapping the margins thereof in a seam, spaced means for tightening the blank around the form during said overlapping, and means for sealing the seam between the tightening means.

6. A footwear upper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means for encasing the form with an open blank and overlapping the margins thereof, spaced means for tightening the blank around the form during said overlapping, means for joining the margins between the tightening means, means for withdrawing the tightening means, and means for sealing the remainder of the margins.

7. A footwear upper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means for encasing the form with an open blank and overlapping the margins thereof, means for tightening the blank around the form during said overlapping, said tightening means being provided with both a body portion and extensions adapted to engage the blank, spaced means for joining the margins of the blank between the extensions, means for withdrawing the tightening means, and means for joining the remainder of the margins.

8. A footwear upper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means independent of the form for folding a blank around the form and joining the side margins thereof while tensioning the blank both laterally and longitudinally, and means for adjusting said holding means.

9. A footwear upper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means independent of the form for folding a blank around the form to overlap its margins,

means for moving the form laterally to facilitate the folding operation, and means for uniting the margins.

10. A footwear upper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means for gripping'a blank, means for causing the gripping means to encase the form with the blank and overlap the margins of the blank, and means for pressing the overlapped mar- .1 gins togetnei.

11. A footwear upper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means for supporting a blank adjacent thereto, means for gripping opposite ends of the blank and for drawing its margins around the form into overlapped relation, means for tightening the blank around the form, andv means for joining the overlapped margins.

12. A footwear upper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, gripper means mounted for rotation adapted to grip a blank and fold the margins of the same around the form into overlapped position, the gripper means for folding one margin of the blank being relatively advanced in its rotation so as to position its margin of the blank around the form in advance of the other margin.

, 13. A footwear upper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means for supporting a blank adjacent thereto, means for gripping the blank and drawing the margins thereof around the form and across themiddle thereof into overlapping position, and means for sealing the resulting seam.

14L. A footwear upper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means for supportmg a blank ad acent thereto, gripper means, means for moving the gripper means into position to engage and to grip the ends of the blank, and means for moving the gripper means in an' arcto encase the form with theblank. I

15. A foot-wear upper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means for gripping a blank, means for moving the form substantially normally to the blank,

means for moving the gripper means to bring the margins of the blank around the form in overlapped relation, and means for joining the overlapped margins. I

. 16. A footwearupper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means for gripping a blank and for drawing opposite margins thereof around the form into overlapped position, means for tightening the blankaround the form, means for withdrawing the gripper means, and means for pressing the overlapped margins together. 17. A footwear upper assembling machine comprising means for holding a form, means for encasing the form with a blank and over lapping the margins thereof, pressure means for tightening the blank around the form with an increasing pressure, and means for uniting said margins. I

comprising means for holding a form and a blank in superposed relation, means for nn-,

parting relative movementto the form and blank to fold the latter around the form with its margins overlapped, means for stretching the blank to closely conform it to the form, and means for uniting said margins.

19. An assembling machine comprising means for holding a form and a sheet blank in cooperative relation, means for gripping the blank and folding it around the form with its margins overlapping, means for imparting equal translatory movement to the gripping means for the under and overlapped margins, and a lost motion actuating connection for the underlappedmargin gripping means.

Signed at New Haven, county of New Haven, State of Connecticut, this 8th da of September, 1927.

nnN sT L. )PAT'IEN. 

